Carrollton, GA – The UWG Wolves’ men’s basketball program doesn’t play a game for five more months. However, since over as head coach in April, Dave Moore has been moving at break-neck speed to get his program off on the right foot.

Recently, Coach Moore sat down with the sports information staff at UWG to offer fans a progress report on his UWG Wolves’ men’s basketball program.

How has the past seven weeks been for you?

“It has been a whirlwind, it has been a whirlwind in terms of trying to move the family, buy a house, sell a house, getting used to the roster, getting to know the guys and trying to figure what we do or don’t need. It has been a whirlwind seven weeks but we have accomplished all those things I just mentioned. The family is settled in with a house here in Carrollton. That helps me knowing my family and my kids are settled down and settled in. That allows me to get to work.

What did you like about the returning players?

“Well, I like the group in terms of how coachable they were, I got a chance to work them out twice. Each player got to work out twice. I got a feel of what they can do or what they can’t do like fundamentals, ability to score the ball, everything was offensively oriented. I love the group, I love how hard they went, they were eager to impress, which was a good sign. I think we have some good pieces returning and with the pieces we’re going to add, I feel like we will have a chance at being successful.”

Have you added any players to the team?

“We have added two guys so far and the biggest thing I wanted to add was some skill. Basketball is a skilled game. The better the skill the better the player. We wanted to add some guys to shoot the basketball from the perimeter stretch the defense and keep people honest. We have a lot of returners that can put the ball down and create offense.

I felt like we needed guys that could shoot the ball from the perimeter and I believe we have added that.”

What kind of perception does West Georgia have when recruiting?

“Well, here locally it’s a perception. People know about West Georgia, know that it’s a great university with a beautiful campus and awesome facilities. All of that has been positive locally. I recruit Cincinnati, which is where I am from and around the Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana area. Now it is about getting the word out. What kind of place is West Georgia, what kind of program, what kind of school? This would be for other areas of the country that we’re going to recruit. We’re going to recruit the Georgia area, Atlanta, West Georgia, and Alabama as hard as we can. We’re also going to do national recruiting as well. That is what I am used to coming from St. Bonaventure, which has a national scale for recruiting all different parts of the country. We’re going to leave no stone unturned in terms of recruiting.

Coming from ST. Bonaventure, is there any difference in coaching at this level of basketball?

“It’s not a whole lot different, basketball is basketball. You still have to defend, rebound, take care of the ball, and make all your foul shots. All the things stay the same. The athlete is a little bit different. There is more size at the division one level and a little bit more athleticism especially with the forwards. The forwards I had at St. Bonaventure were longer more athletic type guys. Here the forwards are quicker, more guard skill type forwards. That will be what we are looking for in the future. In terms of the basketball part of it, the teaching and development of players never changes.

What are your thoughts on the Gulf South Conference?

“Just a bunch of really good coaches. Really good coaches that know how to run successful programs and have been at this level for a long time. Guys like Mike Nienaber that I played for, Lennie Acuff who has known me since I was a college player, and Coach Boone at Delta State. I have a tremendous amount of respect for those guys and they have won a zillion games at this level. I understand it will be a challenge every single night going against those programs. I have a lot of respect for the coaches in this league.”

How has your family reacted to moving down south?

“Well, I was walking the dog with my two kids and my 4-year-old daughter says, Dad its so hot down here. It is different, the climate is different the temperature is probably high 60’s in New York right now while it is in the high 80’s low 90’s right now. It has been an adjustment but luckily we have a neighborhood pool that the kids can go to so they are having a lot of fun with that. I am really excited about moving back down south, my dad was born and raised in Memphis. I also spent seven years as a college student down here during undergrad and graduate school. I love it down here. I love the climate and the people. It has been great so far.”

Is there anything that fans should be excited about coming into this season?

“I think the three seniors we have coming back are talented guys and I think they are hungry guys. They have a bit of a bad taste in their mouths from a 14-14 record last year. I think they want to close out their careers with big time success. Your only going to be as good as your seniors and I believe the three we have coming back, Aren, Karlos, and Marquill will lead the way with the young guys following. As a fan of West Georgia Basketball, it is an exciting time in terms of our seniors and what their goals are winning a Gulf South championship and to compete on a national level. Also, our young guys are exciting especially our rising sophomores that we have coming back are really talented with lots of upside and chances to become really good players. Then the freshman group we have including some redshirts and the two pieces we have that are prep school kids that have a chance to be good now and in the future. I am excited about where the roster is at and the balance we have with the roster. We’re looking to add one more critical piece to this year’s recruiting class and if we can do that with the guys buying in, work hard, and having the mentality of getting better every single day, we have a chance of being really good right away. That is the exciting part.”

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